The Small Pond
by Orcux
Summary: Tanuma receives a unique gift for his birthday. Slight Tanuma x Natsume


Happy birthday Tanuma! May you have happy times with Natsume forever. LOL.

I've been planning to write a Matoba x Natsume (because Matoba is irresistible) but this came out first! I sort of just realised it was Tanuma's birthday today and wrote this in a rush, so ugh.

Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

It was that time of the year again, Tanuma thought to himself, leaning back on the cushions he'd spread out on the wooden floor.

It was his birthday, the first one he'd spent in the countryside, and although he hadn't expected anyone to celebrate it with him, he still felt rather lonely. His father was out, his duties as a priest leading him to purify the areas outside, and he wouldn't be back until the next day.

His gaze flickered up to the ceiling, where the pond's silhouette shimmered and glittered tantalizingly out of reach. The shadow of a carp darted out of sight, within the faint ripples of the water, and he smiled softly, remembering how Natsume had told him that it was red in color.

He got up and opened the sliding door, pushing it open just enough for him to peek out and look into the lawn, and barely suppressed his disappointed sigh.

Somehow, even though he had already known beforehand that no matter how many times he opened this door, no matter how many times he rubbed his eyes furiously, he wouldn't be able to see what was right outside his lawn which close enough to touch, the sinking feeling in his chest wouldn't go away, and only increased every time he laid his eyes on the bare lawn. It looked so serene and peaceful that it seemed almost impossible that there would be a pond out there.

Noting that night had already fallen, he closed his door softly, sighing to himself. His father still hadn't returned.

Just then, there was a soft knock on the door, and hope fluttered in his chest.

Could it be… his father?

He reached out to open the door, only to pause hesitatingly. His father wouldn't have to knock on the door though. The only other person who knew where he lived was…

"Tanuma! Are you there?"

There it was, the warm, familiar voice he had become so accustomed to… Natsume!

He yanked the sliding door open, eyes widening as he took in Natsume's disheveled appearance. His shirt was tattered, and his jeans were torn, revealing a few scraps, while a few leaves had gotten caught in his hair.

"Natsume! What happened?" Tanuma gasped, moving forward to clutch the other boy by his shoulders tightly. Natsume winced slightly, and Tanuma let go quickly, afraid that he had accidentally asserted pressure on one of Natsume's wounds. "S-Sorry…" He flustered.

Natsume blinked at the loss of contact, before understanding dawned upon him, and he smiled gently, his honey golden eyes bright with laughter. "Ah, no. There's nothing to be sorry for; I just wasn't expecting you to do that so suddenly."

"Oh… I see." Tanuma smiled in relief.

Natsume's curious gaze followed him as he raised a hand, and brushed the leaves out of Natsume's hair. He laughed softly, "There were leaves stuck in your hair, Natsume." Natsume laughed as well, a melodious sound in the soft wind.

* * *

"I just ran into some ayakashi out in the woods," Natsume explained, wincing slightly as Tanuma bandaged his arm carefully. Seeing Tanuma's worried expression, he added quickly, "But it turned out fine, since Natori-san helped me out!"

Natori Shuuichi. It was strange how annoyed he was feeling at the older man, when previously, he'd thought of him as nothing more than an actor with good looks.

"Why were you with him anyway?" Tanuma questioned, not really sure that he wanted to know the answer. If Natsume told him that they had been out on a date or something, he wasn't sure how he would respond.

Natsume smiled mysteriously before reaching into his pocket, and pulling out something. "I needed his help with something… Actually, I wanted to show you something." Tanuma blinked as a box was placed on his palm, and his gaze flickered to Natsume uncertainly. When the other just smiled at him expectantly, he gave in to his curiosity and undid the latch, watching as the box swung open with a click.

It was a pair of glasses.

"Um…" Tanuma stuttered, unsure of what to say. "These are some… very nice glasses." He settled on a compliment, not sure of how else he should respond in this situation.

"Aren't they? They're for you, Tanuma." Natsume beamed, delighted with his response.

Tanuma blinked, before breaking into a smile. "Really? Thanks Natsume!" A present was a present, no matter how queer it was. This would be his first pair of glasses at any rate, and any present from Natsume would be perfect, no matter what it was. "Umm," He frowned suddenly as he realized something, "My eyesight isn't exactly bad, though."

Natsume looked as if he was holding back a laugh. "How about you try it on?"

At Natsume's urging, Tanuma lifted the glasses out from its box and wore them. He felt strange, as if he was near the forest surrounding his house; a trickle of energy thrummed through his body. His surroundings didn't look any different though. He glanced at Natsume curiously, who had been gauging his response.

Natsume smiled, gesturing him to his feet, as he pulled open the sliding door gently. "Do you see anything?"

Where there was usually nothing but grass was a magnificent pond. Tanuma could only watch breathlessly, the ethereal image burned into his retinas as he took in the gently rippling waters, the pebbles surrounding the pond, and the crimson red colored carps which flitted in the water, tails swishing.

"How... why…?" He mumbled, transfixed by the image. Beside him, Natsume laughed softly.

"Natori-san told me that it's easier seeing ayakashi through objects, like glasses and mirrors," he explained. "He taught me how to infuse some of my spiritual energy with these, so you'd be able to see the ayakashi fully, since you can already sense them."

The familiar thrum of energy ran through Tanuma's body again, but it was warm and gentle, and reminded him of Natsume.

"The spiritual energy may disappear after some time, but even so…" Natsume paused, and turned to look at the pond as well, the rippling surface of the water reflected in his eyes. "I wanted to show you this sight."

Emotions welled up from within Tanuma, and he tore his eyes away from the sight momentarily, to smile at Natsume. Joy, gratitude… he couldn't even begin to decipher his feelings right now. It was just too confusing, and it was a big mess, but he spoke up anyway, his voice cracking slightly. "Thank you, Natsume."

Natsume smiled and leaned forward, giving Tanuma a chaste kiss on his cheek. "Happy birthday, Tanuma."

* * *

**I thought that Tanuma must've felt frustrated when he couldn't even see the pond outside his own house, when Natsume could. I hope this makes up for it (in my mind at least).**

**Don't forget to review! :)**

**Thanks for reading!**


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